BUHWEJU, UGANDA – In the rolling hills of Buhweju District, a political storm is brewing as parliamentary hopeful Ameria Kantona faces backlash for deploying what opponents call a “shameless cash-for-votes scheme.” With just weeks until the polls, Kantona—a relative unknown who secured a mere 1,400 votes in the NRM primaries—has pivoted to a brazen strategy: dispensing crisp Shs.10,000 notes to voters at rallies, framing the payments as “Christmas generosity.”
“Why debate policies when you can just pay people to clap for you?” quipped a trader, clutching a freshly minted note emblazoned with Kantona’s face. The cash handouts, critics argue, exploit economic desperation in a region grappling with rising food prices, framing electoral support as transactional rather than ideological.
While Kantona’s camp insists the payments are “appreciation tokens,” opponents like incumbent MP Oyes Byamukama—who trounced her with 68% in the primaries—accuse her of undermining democracy. “Voters aren’t ATMs; they deserve respect, not bribes,” Byamukama stated.
The math tells a grim tale: to match Byamukama’s primary votes, Kantona would need to distribute over Shs.300 million—a staggering sum that raises questions about funding sources. Electoral watchdogs have flagged the tactic, with Uganda’s Anti-Corruption Coalition warning such practices “erode trust in institutions.”
As the December vote looms, Buhweju’s electorate faces a dilemma: take the cash and risk buyer’s remorse, or reject short-term gains for long-term accountability. One voter put it bluntly: “Shs.10,000 buys a chicken today. But what happens when the money runs out tomorrow?”
The Electoral Commission has yet to comment on whether Kantona’s tactics breach campaign laws.
